Take-Home Exam Availability

Take-home exams are administered remotely. You will use:

• Exam4 software to download the exam, prepare and submit your response.

Take-home exams are either date-specific or may be taken anytime during the exam period. 

• Date-specific take-home exams: 
  • Available for download from the Exam4 software from 12:01 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. on the assigned date. 
  • The clock will begin to run as soon as you have accessed your exam via the Exam4 software. You must prepare and submit your response via the Exam4 software by the end your allotted time (set by your instructor) or by 11:59 p.m. on that day, whichever comes first.
• Anytime take-home exams: 
  • Available for download from the Exam4 software from 12:01 a.m. on the first day of the exam period to 11:59 p.m. on the last day of the exam period.
  • The clock will begin to run as soon as you have accessed your exam via the Exam4 software. You must prepare and submit your response via the Exam4 software by the end your allotted time (set by your instructor) or by 11:59 p.m. on the last day of the exam period, whichever comes first.

It is important to plan your take-home exam start time accordingly so that you have your full time. For example, if you have an 6-hour specific-date take-home exam, and you start it at 7 p.m., it will still be due at 11:59 p.m., even though you have not used the full 6 hours. The same is true for anytime take-home exams - the final deadline to submit is 11:59 p.m. on the last day of the exam period, so be sure to start early enough to get your full time. 

To the extent possible, we strongly encourage you to take your take-home exams during normal business hours, as Law School staff and the Law School Help Desk may not be available after hours (see Law School Help Desk hours). 

All times are listed in Central Time. 

Take-Home Exam Instructions

Before Exam Day

1. Review the How to use Exam4 Software for a TAKEHOME exam. 
2. Watch the Exam4 "How-To" Videos to prepare for exams.
3. Uninstall any previous versions of the Exam4 software installed on your computer. 
4. Download the updated version of the Exam4 software, which you must do every semester after the Law School notifies students that the Exam4 software is ready for the current exam period. If you have midterms that use the Exam4 software, you will need to download it twice per semester: once for midterms and once for final exams. 
5. Take as many practice exams as necessary to get comfortable with the software, and familiarize yourself with all of the Exam4 features. 
6. Familiarize yourself with the procedures for technical issues and personal emergencies, so that you know how to proceed in the event you encounter an issue before, during, or submitting your exam. 
7. If you are taking a final take-home exam from another country, it is imperative that you follow the steps below:
   1. Download the WiscVPN Global Protect program. Knowledgebase link on how to download, setup, and login to VPN here: https://kb.wisc.edu/90370. You should download, install, and test the VPN software before leaving Madison. This will enable you to submit your exam from another country. If you do not have the VPN software installed and connected, you will not be able to submit your exam. For assistance with the VPN software you can contact the law school helpdesk (email: help@law.wisc.edu or stop by room 2115 in the law school) or reach out to DoIT: 608-264-4357. 
   2. When you are ready to take your take-home exam:
      1. Log into Global Protect (VPN)
      2. Follow the normal take-home exam process.
      3. The tech office will be available for questions, but only during business hours (8:00 - 4:30) Central Time.

On Exam Day

1. Launch the Exam4 software and begin the appropriate exam in the Exam4 software.
   1. Your time starts by beginning the exam in the Exam4 software.
2. Prepare your exam answer in the Exam4 software.
   
   1. During take-home exams only, you can cut, copy, & paste from an external document into Exam4. However, we strongly recommend that you write your exam answer directly in Exam4, because formatting and word counts will NOT be preserved when copying from an external document into Exam4. More importantly, however, Exam4 files are backed up every two minutes and easily retrieved in the case of computer malfunction, but other programs do not provide you this protection. If your computer crashes and you lose some of your work, the Law School may not be able to assist you and there will be NO recourse if you used Word (or any other application other than Exam4) to prepare your exam answer.
3. OPTIONAL: If you wish to exit the Exam4 software and continue working on your exam later, follow the instructions to suspend and resume your exam.
   1. Your time will continue to run during any breaks. 
4. Submit your exam answer via the Exam4 software by your deadline.
   
   1. Once you have submitted your exam, you will not be permitted to make any changes to the document, even if time is still remaining.

Practice Take-Home Exam

Review the practice exam information on the Exam4 Instructions page. After doing so, follow the take-home exam instructions above. You should select "Practice Exam TAKEHOME" in the Exam4 software as the "course." 

Procedures for technical issues

The following are procedures for various technical problems that may arise. To the extent possible, we strongly encourage you to take your take-home exams during normal business hours, as Law School staff and the Law School Help Desk may not be available after hours. 

And remember, taking a practice exam is the best way to troubleshoot before your exam starts!

• Technical issues at the beginning of an exam
  • Extra time will NOT be provided for preventable technical issues at the beginning of an exam, such as forgetting to download the latest version of the Exam4 software.
  • Be sure to take a practice exam before each exam period - once before midterms and once before final exams - with the latest Exam4 software version to address these common problems, and confirm that you see the correct semester and exam period (midterms v. final exams) listed in the Exam4 software. 
• Technical issues during an exam
  • We strongly recommend that you write your exam answer directly in Exam4, because Exam4 files are backed up every two minutes and easily retrieved in the case of computer malfunction, but other programs do not provide you this protection. 
  • If your computer crashes and you lose some of your work, the Law School may not be able to assist you and there will be NO recourse if you used Word (or any other application other than Exam4) to prepare your exam answer.
• Technical issues at the end of an exam (submission issues)
  • As of the Spring 2022 term, take-home exams must be submitted via the Exam4 software. You CANNOT submit your exam via the Exam4 website, as you may have done in the past. 
  • If you've prepared your exam using a different application (e.g., Word), you should copy and paste your exam answers into the Exam4 software and submit your exam answers electronically via the Exam4 software. Your exam will be considered late if you copy and paste your answers from a different application into the Exam4 software after your deadline, as the Law School cannot verify that you did not do any substantive work on your exam after your deadline.
  • Be sure to take a practice exam to familiarize yourself with the new take-home exam submission process.